1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to equipment used in high value assets and particularly, to event and data recorder systems used in high value assets.
2. Description of the Prior Art
High value assets such as locomotives, mining, cargo, marine and military vehicles and vessels typically employ an onboard data acquisition and logging device, similar to a “black box” on airplanes. A typical onboard data acquisition and logging device, or an event/data recorder, comprises digital and analog inputs as well as pressure switches and pressure transducers which record data from various onboard sensor devices. These event/data recorders log a variety of system parameters used for incident investigation, crew performance evaluation, fuel efficiency analysis, maintenance planning, and predictive diagnostics. Recorded data may include such parameters as speed, distance traveled, location, fuel level, engine revolutions per minute (RPM), fluid levels, operator controls, pressures, and ambient conditions. In addition to the basic event and operational data, video and audio event/data recording capabilities are also deployed on many of these same mobile assets.
The primary objects of the present invention are to provide automatic collision detection, to reduce loss due to rough switching and train operations, to reduce fuel costs by eliminating excess idle, to enhance positioning accuracy, to improve over-the-road fuel accuracy, and to provide real-time track monitoring.
A further object of the present invention is remote accident alerting combining collision detection, roll-over detection, video and logging of operator actions before and after incidents to provide complete incident analysis.
Another object of the present invention is using accelerometer-based pitch and roll measurements to provide accurate liquid levels in mobile fuel storage tanks.
A further object of the present invention is the use of a non-intrusive accelerometer to determine the running/not-running state of an engine and auxiliary loads on that engine.
Another object of the present invention is the use of accelerometer data combined with logged operator actions and GPS location data to precisely locate rough operating environment, such as bad track, rough seas, and poor roads.
Yet another object of the present invention is the use of a high accuracy GPS, a 3-axis digital accelerometer, a digital compass and a 3-axis digital gyroscope combined to provide dead reckoning based arrival and departure notifications for mobile assets in conditions where no GPS signal is available, such as under canopies or overhangs at stations and docks.